Oncology trial failures

Oncology clinical trial failures: search stopped cancer trials

Oncology is one of the most active clinical research areas, and stopped cancer trials can reveal important biological, safety, and development signals. This page explains how to study oncology clinical trial failures using structured registry data.

Why oncology trial failures matter

Cancer drug development is complex. A stopped oncology trial may reflect a weak efficacy signal, a safety problem, patient recruitment difficulty, changing standard of care, or a sponsor portfolio decision.

Looking across stopped oncology records can help analysts identify repeated failure patterns, difficult indications, development bottlenecks, and places where a mechanism may have struggled in clinical testing.

Signals to look for in stopped cancer trials

Important stop-reason language includes lack of efficacy, futility, failure to meet endpoints, adverse events, toxicity, enrollment challenges, and strategic discontinuation. Each phrase implies a different interpretation.

The database helps structure those signals so oncology trial failures can be compared by phase, sponsor, disease area, condition, intervention, and reason bucket.

Verification is essential

Oncology records can be especially nuanced because treatment standards, combinations, biomarkers, and patient populations change quickly. A registry stop reason should be treated as a lead, not a final conclusion.

Use the app to find candidate records, then verify each NCT record and related publications or sponsor disclosures before making scientific or commercial judgments.

Original dataset signals

Oncology-specific stopped-trial signals

Oncology is the largest disease area in the broader stopped-trial dataset. The current oncology slice includes many operational and unclear stops, but also hundreds of records with efficacy/futility or safety signals that deserve deeper review.

Oncology-related records8,814

Stopped trials matched to oncology or cancer-related disease-area language.

Likely biological failures665

Oncology records classified as efficacy/futility or safety signals.

Biological share8%

Many stopped oncology studies are operational, strategic, or unclear rather than direct scientific failures.

Common oncology conditions

Breast cancer
471
Multiple myeloma
290
Prostate cancer
275
Melanoma
216

Top oncology phases

Phase 2
5,106
Phase 1
3,748
Phase 3
775
Early phase 1
243

Example records to verify

NCT05491317

Immunoradiotherapy combinations in metastatic solid tumors

Efficacy/futility

The registry reason says the sponsor did not proceed to randomized Phase 2 due to lack of efficacy, a concrete oncology failure signal.

Open trial record
NCT01012297

Gemcitabine and docetaxel with or without bevacizumab

Efficacy/futility

This cancer trial closed early for futility, making it useful for users studying endpoint and efficacy-related oncology stops.

Open trial record
NCT00253318

RAD001 plus docetaxel in metastatic breast cancer

Safety

The stop language combines toxicity and lack of efficacy, showing why oncology failures often need both safety and efficacy context.

Open trial record

Oncology counts use the site's disease-area matching across ClinicalTrials.gov-derived records. Cancer trial interpretation can be highly context-dependent because biomarkers, combinations, and standards of care change quickly.

Frequently asked questions

Are all oncology trial failures caused by lack of efficacy?

No. Oncology trials can stop because of efficacy, safety, enrollment, funding, strategy, operational, or regulatory factors.

Can I filter specifically for oncology?

Use the Explore page to search oncology-related disease areas, conditions, sponsors, phases, and stop reasons.

Why are cancer trial stop reasons hard to interpret?

Oncology development often involves biomarkers, combinations, evolving standards of care, and complex patient populations, so primary source verification is important.